Set The Fire To The Third Bar
by hariboo-smirks
Summary: He knows who’s calling. She had called for the first time two days after Daniel and Jack’s still not sure how she got the number but then again, he really doesn’t care. Jack, Daniel/Vala mostly ust .


**A/N:** written for the **danielvala** ficathon for **annerbhp** and completely Jack's fault, because the man would _not shut up_. Seriously.

* * *

**set the fire to the third bar **

"_Of course, that means we'll have to wait until next week to complete our date."_

"_It wasn't a date."_

In all the years Jack has known Daniel he's never seen him quite like _this_. He gets irritated too easily and for Daniel, so prone to the fits of his sometimes too idealistic nature, that is saying _a lot_. Usually the younger man tries to practice patience, patience he's learned from dealing with Jack all those years, but in one instance, with one look from one scantily dressed, leather clad, space pirate, all that training has gone out the window. Flown the coop, and _thank god for that_, Jack thinks, Vala makes Daniel breathe again.

On the screen Jack watches as Vala leans into Daniel's personal space – she doesn't even really touch him when she does though, he's noticed. There is a about a centimetre of space between them, but there is more intimacy, more electricity, in that space than if Vala was wrapping her spindly arms around his neck and breathing _Darling_ in that accent that Jack knows gets to Daniel. Every. Single. Time.

He knows because he's known Daniel for almost eleven years now and in the three major relationships Daniel has had, the ones that Jack knows about, all the woman have had accents. It really doesn't surprise Jack. Daniel has a kink for accents and languages. Jack is (not) shocked.

What does shock Jack is how clueless Daniel is. Case in point, right now as Vala is leaning into his personal space so much Jack is wondering how she is not tipping over into his lap.

"Daniel…" she drags out the last syllable and her voice wraps around it like a caress. Something solely for Daniel, and even as the man pretends to ignore her; Jack sees the brightening in blue eyes.

Even knowing she's being ignored Vala doesn't stop though. Jack likes that about her.

"Daniel, I'm tired…" She continues.

"Then get some sleep." Daniel's words are clipped and hold that edge of exasperation Jack is too familiar with, but as he turns his head to face Vala and their faces are suddenly so close that all that would be needed for them to be kissing is for Vala to drop her face about three inches.

Vala sighs and leans her forearms on the back of Daniel's chair, effectively putting about two more inches of space between them and moves to rest her chin on a raised palm with a huff, rolling her eyes. "If you would have let me finish, you would have known I'm not tired because I'm sleepy. _I'm tired_ of being on the base!"

"Well then go out! Grab Cam or something." Daniel leans back in his chair and the previous two inches have disappeared again. Jack tries not to grin, especially since Daniel once again turns his attention to him. "I'm having a conversation, if you can't tell." He waves towards Jack and Jack nods to Vala with a smile.

Vala smiles widely back at him and leans forward from her perch behind Daniel, practically resting her chin on Daniel's head. "Hello, Jack." She greets before turning back to Daniel, "Cameron is already out, Sam's napping and Teal'c has a sparing session. Anyways, you owe me dinner and I thought you would be done by now." She rolls her eyes and then winks at Jack, catching him of guard for a brief second.

"Jack, you aren't try to steal Daniel's attention away from me, are you?" she pouts, and Jack laughs, though it's mostly at Daniel's reaction to her words. His friend is sputtering at Vala with fire in his ice blue eyes. Vala, of course, notices, but takes it in her stride. As does Jack. It's been too long since Daniel has looked at anyone with that sort of… _gusto_.

"I would never dream of it." Addressing Daniel, he adds, "Daniel, I can't believe you're making my favourite alien feel unloved."

Daniel now turns his glare at him, but definitely more amused and less impassioned. "Favourite? Now, what would Teal'c say, Jack?" Vala is laughing behind Daniel and Jack narrows his eyes at Daniel, who is sitting smug in chair, and Vala's hand is resting comfortably on his shoulder. Jack doesn't even think Daniel notices and rolls his eyes waving the duo off claiming to have a meeting anyway.

"T and me have an understanding. He knows better than to feel jealous."

"I'm sure… Later, Jack." Giggling, Vala sends him a kiss via the video link as Daniel groans and says goodbye, already pushing himself up and hopefully out of the base with Vala in tow.

Jack only manages to hear a little more of their conversation as they prepare to head off, "So I was thinking we need to see try that new Mexican place Cameron told us about – I feel like burros."

"Burritos." Daniel corrects as he signs off. The screen goes black and Jack turns the video link off, making a note to email Teal'c, and wondering if Daniel even knows he is going out on a date with Vala.

"_So you didn't get any news on Daniel while I was gone?"_

"_Mmmm… Nothing."_

It takes six full days after Carter disappears in her lab for Jack to get the phone call. Two more days than he originally predicted.

He knows who's calling. She had called for the first time two days after Daniel and Jack's still not sure how she got the number but then again, he really doesn't care.

The first call had been quick and after Hank's meeting with the team about the IOA's decisions in regards to Daniel. His secretary had patched her through after what had apparently been quite the phone battle. He had been out in a meeting and she had waited on the line the entire time because and he quotes as Darla recounted, _I will wait as long as I need to because if anybody is going to pay attention me about Daniel it sure as hell should be him. Now, Darla, you can either keep me on hold or talk to me, but I will __**not**__ be waiting for a call back. _Darla had gone with the smart choice of keeping her on hold.

Before that call he had thought of Vala's interest in Daniel as a passing fancy. Sure, it was great (and amusing) to see Daniel interacting with someone with such fervour and care, but those were Daniel's feelings. Not Vala's. It didn't surprise Jack that Daniel had intrigued the alien woman – most alien woman were intrigue by Daniel –and while he could appreciate the effect she had on Daniel he wasn't sure the effect was mutual.

Vala was a trained con woman after all.

But she _did_ have an effect no matter what Daniel said. She _stirred Daniel up_, she pushed him into the world of the living, into the present, when Daniel would be more than content losing himself in the past, only glimpsing at the now when he found it interesting enough, but Vala – Vala, she made him see her, every side of herself she felt she could show, and pulled him from the dust and battled with him to keep him in the _now_. Jack understands this all too well because he had had the same done for Daniel for years.

In turn the Stargate, the SGC, his team, had done the same for him. They had pulled him forward and in turn he pushed them too. So, now, Vala was doing the same to Daniel, when all other venues seem exhausted, and Jack can get behind that. 100 percent.

Letting Darla patch Vala through, he sighs theatrically into the handset, "What now Vala?"

"Get your ass over here Jack O'Neill." At her tone Jack straightens, because he is now used to getting phone calls from Vala ever since he told her in no small words that she was to stay on base instead of gallivanting off and going in search of her Ori crazy daughter and Daniel.

It had been a long phone call, but she stayed, _thank god_, and by the time Carter had vamoosed they had been having bi-weekly phone calls. Sometimes short and full of empty words, others long and amusing, him giving plenty of ammo to tease Daniel with later (_He's coming back, Vala. He always does_.) And sometimes they had he phone calls that had affirmed Vala's affection for Daniel to Jack (_please Jack, just let me go. She's looking for me, she wants me back and I'll bring him back faster than any of marines can, just let me._) Those always ending quickly with Jack having to cut her off at the legs, because he knows that if he lets her talk more he would let himself be convinced and take up her too tempting offer, with the added addendum of him tagging along. But there have been only two times she's used this voice with him. What he calls "the Vala space pirate voice", the one that knows just when and how to make people do her bidding. And he knows she hasn't used it in her time here, much.

"Watch that mouth, young lady." He scolds her teasingly, but mostly for her to know he's paying attention and she doesn't need to put the show on.

"They're grounding us." She bites out, ignoring his tease, and Jack sighs. He knew this was coming.

"Vala," he only says her name, but that's enough.

"You knew!" Her tone is accusatory and he's sure he deserves it, if not now, then for some later point. "Of course you knew," she keeping going, "you probably signed the papers yourself. Daniel is out there, and the longer we stay here twiddling our fingers doing nothing, the _farther he get_s." Jack doesn't correct her and lets her get it out.

Vala, he's learned from this calls, just needs to know she's being heard, seen. Jack is listening, he's even watching, as much as he can anyway.

"Vala." He stresses her name and she's still ignoring him, but he's had eight and five years of practice getting his kids to listen and has made a whole career of giving orders, "_Vala_!"

Now she quiets, he hears her breathing coming in harshly and slowly, evening out over the phone and begins to talk, "First, yes, I knew Hank was grounding you, and wait, just listen." He cuts off the protest before it even leaves her lips, "I knew, and after this call? I'm pretty glad you are." He hears her gripe and continues, "Just wait. I know you can take care of yourself. You, Mitchell and Teal'c are more than able, but you know what? You're not focused. Not one of you is focused on what you should be focused on, not matter what the hell you tell yourself. You all miss them and are worrying, and the last thing I need is for you three to get killed because you weren't paying attention."

"We're…"

"You're all splitting your attentions. You most of all." He doesn't want to say this, he _likes_ Vala, but he knows he has too. Vala's been inching closer to the edge ever since they lost Daniel and he needs to keep her reeled in until Daniel comes back. Vala might care for them all, love them even, but without Daniel's faith floating in her corners of space she flounders, and she does not like it. Vala is a wild thing, her stay in the SGC, Daniel, and SG-1 has tempered her, but Jack knows if she ever had too, she'd bolt. Steal one of their ships again and run out the door faster than they'll think to look.

It hasn't escape Jack's attention that Vala's past and contacts are still a mystery, but until they become a problem they're a mystery he'll let her keep.

Her scoff comes in loud and clear, but he hears the hitch in her voice, "I'm perfectly fine. It's not my fault your ridiculous government and very unreasonable IOA are being idiotic and choosing to do _nothing_ when they very well know what the threat is out there. It's out there and inching closer each day we let it."

Jack sighs, "But they don't Vala. They don't know what's out there. Not like you and I do." Not like Daniel does, goes unsaid between them for they know that's the reason Daniel isn't here. Daniel knows what's out there and he'll die again to stop it. Jack knows this is what makes Vala the angriest. He can't exactly blame her.

"Then do something about it Jack!" She's pleading to him, hiding the desperation she's feeling in angry words, "You're supposed to be Jack O'Neill, and if the reports aren't lying, then that means something to your stupid Tau'ri. So go! Let us go out there. Let me find him! Be Jack O'Neill."

It doesn't escape Jack that she says _me_ instead of _us_, _let _me_ find him_, and by now he's gripping his handset so tight his knuckles are turning white with the frustration he's feeling, but he has to remind himself that this is a first for Vala – losing Daniel – and he hopes it's the last for her (for all of them), but he's sure it won't be. Still, this is her first barbeque and he closes his eyes, counts to ten and breaths before he answers her.

"I _am_ being Jack O'Neill, Vala, you have no idea how much of Jack O'Neill I'm being right now, so _listen to me_." He can practically hear her straightening on the other side of the phone because he is using The General's voice, because this is _last time_ they're having this particular conversation, and they both know it, just for different reasons. "You and the team are grounded until we either get Carter back or Daniel shows up waiting for us on some random ass world, because this is what happens with them. All the fucking time. And we deal with it. We wait, we wait until they magically show up and then it's business as usual. It sucks, Vala, I won't lie, it sucks big time, but it's how it goes."

The line is silent and, "You better be right, Jack O'Neill." He thinks that's all she going to say but then she surprises him, "More than a month and I'm going after him." The click rings in his ears and even as he slips the handset back with a little more force than usual he lets out a thin smirk.

Vala might not know she's in love with Daniel yet, but Jack hopes Daniel is back by the time she does, because if he isn't then there will be no stopping the woman.

It's not something Jack can feel sad about.

"_You gave in."_

"_More or less."_

There have been a number of times that Jack has wanted to hit Daniel. To ball up his fist and pop his best friend one, but none so much as now. Daniel, Merlin, Prior, _whatever_, is sitting and laying out this crazy ass plan piece by piece like dominos, like he is daring Jack to knock them down before the whole design is finished. It really makes Jack want to punch Daniel. Merlin. Prior. Whatever.

And then he asks Jack to trust him. Trust him. It would be so easy if Daniel wasn't looking like some evil reject mime and he leaves Daniel, Merlin, Prior, whatever, strapped to that chair and tells himself once he's outside that it was the right fucking thing to do.

When it's Vala turn to go in he stands by her at the door, she is quiet. No the sad quiet he's heard about from Mitchell and Carter, or the thoughtful quiet Teal'c tells him about, she's not even the dangerous quiet that Jack knows she hides from them all. Vala is quiet and scared. He puts a hand to her shoulder and when she turns to face him knows it's not that she's scared of Daniel, or of what he can do now, she's scared because those pasty faces haunt her (Jack's read the report. He knows about the fires.)

"You don't have to go in." He offers one last out, but Vala shrugs him off and steps soundly into the room, he watches as she walks straight up to Daniel, staring him down. Two sets of grey eyes, one sparkling and alive, the other foggy and dead. She puts her hands on the metal behind his hand rests and without losing eye contact she hops into his lap. Jack watches as her hand hovers above Daniel's pale cheek before it drops to her lap. He leaves and goes to see the feed.

What he sees shocks him. Not because of Vala. Her words aren't exactly what he would have said, but he watches as each one strikes into Daniel. It's almost amusing, he could have said the almost same exact words, but he and Daniel are too used to poking and prodding and ignoring each other. Vala on the other hand says each word with precision and does not let herself be ignored. It's then Jack realises what the whole sitting on Daniel's lap was. It wasn't about touching Daniel; Jack's not sure Vala can do that right now, or about reassuring herself of Daniel's presence (at least not completely). It was about pushing Daniel. Daniel, Merlin, Prior, whatever, who must have known that nobody would want to get to close to him in this state. He can be intimidating in this state, but with one move Vala shattered that pretence and showed him he was not going to play that game with her. Jack's suddenly very proud of Vala. More than he'll ever let her know of course.

He listens to Daniel's words, _you believe me, right? Now I don't believe you_….

He listens to Vala's words, _Imagine our positions were reversed. What would you do?_and Daniel's face would be priceless if it wasn't so creepy right now. But it's Vala's last words that hit home, _tiniest, nagging doubt_. And there it is, just as Vala walks way, head high. Daniel knows he has Jack's and Teal'c's trust. Unconditional. But Vala, she doubts, she has reason too, both men know this, but what shocks Jack is that Daniel wants her unconditional trust. He sees it in Daniel's face as Vala walks away from him. He needs Vala to trust in him, because Jack suspects Daniel's not quite trusting himself, and Vala pushes him in a way nobody has in a long time. Maybe not even Jack. And that's what shocks Jack.

That it's with this dead face that he can see what Vala has grown to mean to Daniel so clearly.

He leaves the room and goes to find Vala. He finds her where he left her. She is resting her forehead against the ship's bulkhead and her eyes are closed. Walking up to her, he touches her shoulder and she turns glistening grey eyes to Jack.

"I believe in Daniel. Not Merlin, I believe in Daniel, and if for one minute I didn't believe that Daniel wasn't in there somewhere, I'd tell you to throw him out of the air lock. But he is. I can feel him in there, and he won't let us down. Not if he can help it."

"So, we're trusting him?"

"Yes. We're trusting him." Her words are steady in a way her hands aren't and when Jack takes them into his he pats them and nods.

Jack is not sure how Daniel and Vala got to this point. This friendship that is more, but at the same time less than it could be because neither can fully let themselves embrace what they don't admit they feel.

If he believed in soul mates he'd think that these two might be closest to it, but, Jack doesn't believe in soul mates, he doesn't believe in One True Love, he's seen too much and is too old, to believe in that nonsense that there is only one person for you out there. And on first glance he would never think of any of those terms for Daniel and Vala. They're too opposite, too alike, and too broken, but when they're together you just don't notice it as much.

But maybe that's what counts.

Jack does believe love though. Capital L. The love that you feel when you care for someone so greatly that losing them kills a little part of you. It was the kind of love he and Sara had for Charlie, it was the kind of love Carter had had for Martouf, it's the love that Teal'c has for Bra'tac and Ry'ac, and it was the kind of love Daniel and Sha're had had for each other.

Daniel had lost it. And for ten years he had been living the shadow of that loss, and then Vala came, bulldozing her way in and letting something new shine. And she did it with her odd non-finesse. Vala had that kind of love for Daniel and everyday Daniel's for her was letting its presence be known.

The point being Vala isn't willing to sacrifice Daniel. _Good_, Jack thinks.

"Okay then, let's get this show on the road." He nods and Vala breathes.

Jack gives the go ahead. In retrospect, Vala's vote isn't supposed to count, not as much as it does, and to the IOA and Woolsey it won't, but to Jack it's the most important one.

X

After everything is said and done, Jack watches them. More acutely he watches Vala, because she is doing everything _wrong_. The unspoken rule of SG-1 is that you don't talk about what happens when you're gone from the team for a great deal of time – things happen during that time, things that don't need to spoken about, the things that don't go into the reports. It's the unspoken rule to let each other be, to deal with it however you want.

Carter goes for long rides in her bike and locks herself in her lab and comes out three days later with a revolutionary physics proof. Teal'c kelnorims. Mitchell, Jack doesn't quite know what his method is, but he suspects it has to do with beer and ESPN, oh and the jogging – the whole time Carter was gone Jack heard all about Cam's jogging. Jack grills and doubles the amount of beers he puts onto his steaks. Daniel pulls away. He buries himself in dusty tomes and artefacts and he lets nobody in. Not even at Jack on the worst times. And they've all learned this is it. This is how they deal with everything that piles up on them.

Therefore Jack is surprised when Vala completely disregards the rule that's not really rule. Then, he realises he shouldn't be surprised at all; Vala plays by the rules, but _only_ when the rules benefit her. Jack kinda likes that about her.

So after, when they've all learn not to push Daniel, Vala steps into Daniel's personal space as brusquely as ever and he _lets_ her. He rolls his eyes, bitches, but doesn't push her away. Daniel lets Vala in and Jack is not sure that either even knows it.

Vala doesn't have the ten years of training in Daniel, she's good, Jack gives her that – in two years she's gotten deeper than he did in the same amount of time, but she's still just barely pushing past the surface layer and there are many (too many) more. But she's doing an admirable job, and Daniel isn't shutting her out. Well, not completely. It might have to do with the fact that Vala's cunning and sneaky and slips in like sunshine through blinds and Daniel is oblivious. It might also have to do with the fact that they snark so much at each other that neither notices how the chips fall away.

Jack personally believes they're both trying to be clueless, that they're buying into their own denial. He can see it's a slippery slope, maybe one neither is ready for, but if they need to royally mess this up before they get their act together, hell, it just means more fun for him. So he bites back the grin when two days after the IOA finally gave in and realised that Daniel wasn't a threat and allowed him clearance off the mountain Vala steps into Daniel's office and gingerly pulls on the man's arm.

Daniel, annoyed, pulls from her grip and give her the Look, one Jack hasn't seen in years, but Vala is apparently immune to when she announces, "This is not one of those times, Daniel."

"One of what times?" Daniel leans back, arms crossed and brow furrowed.

"_Those_ times," Vala waves a hand in a vague gesture, "you know, where you argue with whatever I want to do, and I give in and go look for Muscles."

Jack, who had been sitting in the extra chair, _Vala's now_, he thinks, can see the beginnings of a pout and leans back as Vala continues.

"This is one of those other times that you don't like to pretend exist and you listen to me, see that I'm right for once and do what I say." She's standing, hands on slim, denim covered hips, hair soft around her face, eyes fierce.

Daniel looks like he's about to argue, Jack can see him starting to lean forward a retort growing in his tongue when he seems to remember something and deflates for a second before he raises his eyes to Vala. Something is exchanged between them that Jack cannot see and Daniel stands.

Vala's smile is wide and happy when she turns to Jack, one hand resting on Daniel's arm. "Now, you two get changed, I think we need to see this bar Teal'c's told me about. You can apparently fight with Jell-o. He, Cameron and Samantha are waiting for us."

Jack's not sure if she's being ignorant on purpose, he suspects she is, but Daniel is blushing and eyes are stuck on Vala's figure, probably picturing the same thing Jack is and watching as Vala leans on the doorframe waiting for them to move, Jack can't blame him.

With one last look at Daniel before he passes Vala on his way out, Jack smirks. "Daniel, if you don't marry the woman, I will." Jack waves his hand at them and grins at Daniel's indignant sputtering and Vala's bright laugh, but he as he turns back for one last look, he catches the sideways glances they give each other before Vala pulls Daniel out of the office, who is still probably cursing Jack's statement, but he lets himself be pulled.

And in the end, that's what matters to Jack above everything else. Daniel is being looked after and Vala… and Vala is reinforcing herself on the very short list of people he'll bend the rules for.

When they meet him topside along with the rest of the team Vala has her arm wrapped around Daniel's, like she's cementing him at her side so he doesn't disappear again. Daniel is looking uncomfortable, but he isn't removing the arm. Everybody notes this, but they don't say anything because of Jack's warning glance, Daniel's flushed cheeks and Vala's smile.

But Jack knows they're all thinking the same thing:

Daniel was sure lucky that the Lucien Alliance sent this particular space pirate his way. Any other and Daniel probably wouldn't be alive and hiding the soft smile that Jack can see twitching at the corners of his mouth.


End file.
